by Lisa Daneils
The table rumbled as the pair were clearly unhappy with this bit of information.
Nissa looked up at Ethan, “What about the southern kingdoms? Is your friend traveling around the south while you travel the north?”
Ethan looked over at her. “Not quite. If it is a long story for them, it’s more like a legend for you, with all kinds of twists and turns that will not interest you.”
Nissa frowned, “What if I am interested?”
The smirk appeared on his face. “You cannot fool me. The only thing that interests you is your lover.”
“Wait, what is this? This isn’t… your…” Lyosha was looking at him with confusion.
“I’m just helping him get to a destination.”
Adrik laughed, “And you say Liam is the gullible one.”
“Absolutely. I offered on my own.”
“After what? An attack? A threat? A small stumble while walking?” Adrik was clearly having a good time, and Nissa wondered just how much Ethan had done to help others. If he was willing to stop to help people like the bear shifters were insinuating, maybe she shouldn’t have taken up so much of his time.
“You are one to talk, Adrik. I’ve seen you help a young woman carry her weapon to battle against you after giving her lessons. If anyone is a pushover, it’s you.”
Adrik grumbled while Lyosha chortled, “Ah, the poor fool. She ended up marrying his uncle after all of that.”
Ethan patted Adrik’s arm. “It’s okay. He’s much better off not being married to that witch. His uncle is absolutely miserable now.”
Adrik muttered something that Nissa didn’t catch.
The four spent another hour just chatting, with the bear shifters talking a bit about the problems caused by the shape shifters, though Nissa wasn’t entirely sure what the difference was.
After the pair left, Ethan let out a big yawn. “I guess we should head to bed. I could use a bit of sleep despite the cold.”
Nissa nodded, a bit of tiredness washing over her.
Chapter 7
Full of Questions before Strike Two
Once they got upstairs, Nissa and Ethan found that the walk had shaken some of the tiredness from them. For another hour or two, they stayed up chatting on the edges of their beds.
Ethan told her a bit about the bear shifters and then he explained the difference between them and the shape shifters. “Shifters are naturally able to change form. From birth, a shifter has two forms.”
“What do you mean?”
“Like Adrik and Lyosha. They can look like humans, but they can turn into bears. In fact, when they are born, most shifters are in their animal shape. It is much hardier than the human form. Human babies are like loud glass. The smallest thing can hurt them. When Adrik and Lyosha get around to having kids, their babes will be born as cubs.”
“That must be weird.”
“Why?”
Nissa scratched her nose, “A mother birthing a cub, it’s just…”
His eyes twinkled in the moonlight. “I couldn’t say. That’s really, really not within my area of knowledge. You seem really interested now. Especially for someone who didn’t know that they existed two days ago.”
“Well, to think that people like that exist… it’s fascinating. Why don’t we see them more often, do you think?”
“It really depends on the type of shifter. You actually do have the bear shifters around people often, they just don’t tend to make it so obvious.”
“Are they the ones that humans are supposed to marry?”
“No. Not as far as I know. Though they are the most likely shifters to marry humans. They live on the islands to the north. Amazing swimmers and unbelievable hunters, so occasionally humans want to marry them for protection. Well, sort of. Any human that marries them has to live with them.”
“What other kinds of shifters are there?” Nissa moved a little closer, her eyes wide with curiosity.
“There are cat shifters—they live on the continent to the north—and some bird shifters across the ocean. I have even heard that there are some whale shifters, but haven’t ever encountered them.”
“What about the shifters who live on the other side of the mountains?”
Ethan bit his lip. “They… I don’t know if you will believe me if I tell you.”
“Oh, come on, it can’t be any more farfetched than the rest.”
Ethan gave her a look that was very similar to the one he gave the bear shifters before shutting them up. “Dragons.”
Nissa gasped, then started to laugh. “Oh, please. Dragons aren’t real. You are going to make me think the rest of it is a lie if you are going to—”
“It’s not a lie or a legend. Bridget married one of them, and that is why she can return almost whenever she wants. L—her husband can bring her to visit her family whenever she asks.”
Nissa frowned. Ethan had just kept from saying something, and she was dying to know what it was. Before she could ask, he cleared his throat. “Anyway, shape shifters are decidedly different. They were once fully human and they immersed themselves in magic, which drives most of them insane eventually. They learn to shift into many different shapes, but their forms are natural. Some of them get trapped between transitions, others lose their minds and forget they were once humans. It’s quite sad, really.”
Nissa shivered. “That sounds horrible. Why would anyone do that to themselves?”
“Power. It is a draw for many humans because… well, I couldn’t really say.”
“You act like you aren’t interested in power.”
His smile was gentle. “My interest in it is irrelevant. If I could just travel the world, I would be perfectly happy. It’s not my future, so I try to enjoy it as much as possible while I still can.”
“Why won’t you be able to keep traveling?”
“It’s…” Ethan looked into her eyes, “difficult to explain, and given how late it is, I think it is best if we both settle down and get some sleep. We have a few long days ahead of us.”
Nissa was disappointed, but knew he was right. “Will you tell me more about yourself on the way to Townsend Flats?”
“If you are willing to regale me with some stories of yourself.”
“It’s a deal.” She held her hand out over the small gap between the two beds.
Ethan looked at her hand, then hesitantly stretched out his own. He gave it a light shake, then kissed the back of her hand before he let go. “Now, get to sleep or I’m going to make you keep up with me tomorrow.”
He rolled over, and she could hear his gentle breathing not long after. Nissa stared at him for a while, her eyes occasionally going to her hand. Something was bothering Ethan, but she didn’t know what. Perhaps she would learn soon.
Nissa was drifting off when she heard his bed move. Figuring he was shifting in his sleep, she smiled a little. Too tired to open her eyes, she drifted off to sleep, thinking about what the next few days would be like.
The next week was uneventful as the pair made their way steadily to Townsend Flats. Ethan really had a good understanding of the territories, even right down to where they should stay. They only had one close call when a few representatives from the palace entered an inn where they had stayed the night before.
“Oh no,” Nissa muttered, looking at the door.
Ethan leaned forward, “People looking for you?” He managed to keep his eyes trained on her instead of turning to look at the men.
“Yeah. And they are coming this way.” Nissa had gotten a little lax about keeping up her appearance, and now she was very sure that they were going to recognize her.
Just before the palace representatives reached the table, Ethan dipped his fingers in the strawberry jam in front of her. He dotted a few of the seeds on her face, leaving it feeling a little sticky. When the men stopped at the table, Ethan looked up with his amazing smile and beamed at them. “Isn’t she lovely?”
The men frowned and looked at him like they had no idea what he was talking about
.
To Nissa’s horror, he gestured to her, “My wife. Isn’t she lovely? She’s been worried because she’s a few months along, but I don’t care. That extra weight makes her that much prettier because to me, it says love.” He reached out a hand and caressed her cheek.
Nissa couldn’t help but giggle and look down.
One of the men smiled and said, “She is lovely. I wish you both the best. Now, if you will excuse us.”
With that, they marched off.
Ethan stood up and moved over to offer Nissa some help standing. Forcing her stomach out, Nissa began to walk as if she were expecting, and let Ethan escort her away from the inn. It was difficult to keep her body in that position, so as soon as they were out of sight of the inn, she let out a heavy sigh. “Thank the divines, but that was close.”
“Indeed,” Ethan looked down at her face, “but my lovely little wife did so well.” Without warning, he bent down to her face. She felt something brush against her cheek, and it was only after the second time that she realized he was brushing off the strawberry seeds.
“Sorry about that,” he said. “Thought it would help, but your reaction was much better. They didn’t get a chance to see your face at all.”
Nissa was blushing furiously because at first she had thought Ethan had kissed her. Then she realized that she had actually been glad. Clearing her throat, she felt very foolish. Her companion had made it perfectly clear from day one that he was not interested in her like that. Slightly ashamed, she looked down the road. “I guess we should move a little faster. Or maybe go off the road so that they don’t find us again. It would be difficult to answer why a pregnant woman was walking such a distance.”
“That is a very good point, but they just came from this direction.”
“How do you know?” She looked over at him, then quickly looked away when she realized he was looking at her.
Ethan did not comment on how she had hidden her face, but simply responded, “From the tracks in the road. They came from here, so they are going in the opposite direction. We’ll just need to make sure to hide you a bit better.”
She tried to smile at him in response, but found that it was difficult to look at him after what had just happened. The gentle way he had caressed her cheek and the love that had filled his voice… Of course it had been fake, but she found herself wishing that it hadn’t been.
That evening, they reached Townsend Flats. With only one inn in the small town, it didn’t take long for them to realize that Nicolas wasn’t there.
Ethan got them another room, but this time it only had one bed, which they found out once they got there.
“Well,” he said, looking down at the double bed, “it’s a good thing I don’t need to sleep tonight because I am not a fan of sleeping on the floor.”
“Oh, come on. We have been pushing it, and I know that you did not sleep that well last night. For the divines’ sake, it was almost light when we stopped talking.”
“Ah well, then I should have been smarter about it.” His smile faded a little as he looked at her. “Don’t worry about me. I will be perfectly fine. You just make sure to get some sleep.” Without warning, he patted her stomach. “Wouldn’t want the little mother to be too tired.”
Nissa pushed his hand away. “Oh, haha, aren’t you the funny one. Look, I know you don’t see me that way, so if it doesn’t make you too uncomfortable, I’m alright with you taking half the bed. I mean, you did pay for the room. For all of the rooms so far. I don’t feel right taking the bed and making you go without sleep.”
“That’s very sweet—” he was shaking his head.
“Oh, come on, I know you aren’t going to do anything to me. If I’ve learned anything, it is that you see me like a younger sister or a pet more than a woman. It’s fine.” She removed the bags she had attached to her and put them down. “I’m going to clean up, then go to bed.”
“What about dinner?”
“We just finished those sandwiches from the last inn. At this point, I’m just tired.”
She finished cleaning up, then got into bed. Ethan seemed to be debating what to do as he paced over near the door. After a few minutes, Nissa sat up. “Look, if you don’t come and get some sleep, I’m going to take the floor.”
“What? Why would you do that?”
“Because it’s wrong for me to take the bed. I’m not some brittle statue or infant that will break if things get a little rough. I don’t carry a sword just for the look of it. If you don’t want to share the bed with me, then I will sleep elsewhere so that you can get a good night’s rest.”
Ethan looked at her, then sighed, “Alright.” He disappeared into the bathroom. When he emerged, Nissa pretended to be asleep so that she could reprimand him if he left or tried to sleep on the floor.
To her surprise, she felt the bed move under his weight, and not as much as she had expected. The princess wanted to open an eye to see what he was doing, but knew that doing that would just upset him.
Instead she muttered, “Stop hanging over the edge. You’ll wake both of us if you hit the floor.”
The bed shook a little as he laughed. “Fine. But don’t blame me for the state we are in when we wake.”
Chapter 8
Precarious Situation
As Ethan had predicted, the start to the next day was very different from what Nissa had expected. When she woke, she found him cuddled up against her, and he felt incredibly cold. The princess began to worry that it meant something was wrong with him. She ran her fingers through his hair as her other hand rubbed up and down his arm. “Why are you so cold?”
Her quiet voice seemed to cause him to stir. Moving closer to her, Ethan said, “It’s in the blood. You are so warm. Would it be alright to stay close to you for a little bit longer?”
Nissa laughed, “Of course, if it will help you warm up.” Then she stopped moving her hand through his hair.
His large hand reached up and took her hand. Putting it back on his head, Ethan said, “You don’t have to stop. It helps the blood to circulate.”
“No, it doesn’t, you silly man.” She giggled and began to run her hand through his hair again.
He answered with a raspberry, taking her completely by surprise. The sensation tickled her a little as the vibrations from his head moved against her stomach.
“Oh, are you ticklish?” he asked, a little more awake.
“Don’t you dare, Ethan, don’t you—” Before she could move away, his hands were on her sides, causing her to laugh.
He stopped and was smiling at her, clearly awake. “That’s what you get for taking advantage of someone who’s sleeping.”
“What do you mean? You asked me if you could keep close!”
“Yeah, but you should have said no.” He moved away and got out of the bed.
“Well, you looked so cute and vulnerable. It’s not often that I get to see that, and it was too precious to pass up.”
Ethan turned and looked at her. “Be careful what you say. Much of that sounded like an invitation.”
Nissa froze for a moment, then she started to laugh hard enough to shake the bed. “Oh, please. If there is one thing you have made perfectly clear, it is that you have no interest in me like that.”
“Maybe when I’m awake, but when I’m half asleep next to a warm body, there isn’t much of my mind at work.” Ethan was giving her a lopsided grin, and Nissa wasn’t sure if he was being serious or if he was just trying to make her be more cautious.
She waved the idea away. “You would never do anything like that to me because you know I’m in love with someone else.”
The look on her companion’s face was difficult to read as he said, “I’m not so certain of that at the moment.”
“What?” Nissa felt the blood start to drain from her face.
He simply gave her a grin, then disappeared into the bathroom.
Nissa sat still on the bed, her mind reeling through what had just happened. Nothing happened.
Absolutely nothing. You are in love with Nicolas, and you are just excited that you are getting closer to him. Probably.
Even to her, that sounded a little less plausible. Feeling slightly upset that she had let herself get so close to another man, Nissa decided to keep Ethan at a bit of a distance. It seemed unlikely that she could take him seriously about anything happening. However, it was easy to believe that he was making a point. There were definitely men out there who would have taken what she said the night before the wrong way. Had she insisted on the same thing with anyone else, it would have been all but guaranteed that something would have happened. Part of her wanted to believe that was why she had insisted on letting him sleep with her—because she knew nothing would. She ignored the small part of her that had hoped that maybe something would happen.
I’m in love with Nicolas, and I’m losing sight of that. This whole thing is to find him so that I can finally get married, so I’m going to stop this stupid doubting of myself.
When Ethan emerged from the bathroom a while later, she went in and dressed like she had any other morning.
The next few hours were a little uncomfortable as Nissa tried to re-establish distance between her and her guide. He had already done so much for her, she didn’t need to be sending him mixed signals.
For his part, Ethan didn’t seem much changed that morning, though he wasn’t as talkative as he had been other mornings. Then again, Nissa wasn’t talking much either. Usually he responded more to her, so her being quieter might have translated to him trying to be considerate of her. For as open and easygoing as he was, Ethan was much more difficult to read than anyone she had known.
Both of them were so lost in their own thoughts that the sound of a man’s voice took them by surprise.
“Give us whatever money you have and you won’t be hurt.”
Nissa looked up and saw about a dozen men standing around them. The oldest one couldn’t possibly have been much older than her. These were young men who lived on the margins, perhaps orphans from the last raid or plague. These things happened much more often to people the further from the palace that they went. She began to remove her bag of gold coins, figuring that she would not need them nearly as much as these men.
